The Church's Just War Theory - Part 1

FR. WILLIAM SAUNDERS

With recent conflict between Iraq sod the United States. the the of war, the use of chemical weapons, and the debate over the morality of the embargo imposed since Desert Storm, what moral teaching guides our thinking as Catholics concerning these issues?

Before addressing the particular issues of germ warfare or other weapons
of mass destruction, or of the embargo, we must first review "just war theory."
At first hearing war seems antithetical to Christianity since the Fifth
Commandment states, "Thou shalt not kill."

However, the intent of the precept forbids the purposeful taking of human
life (Catechism, #2307). Each person has a duty to preserve his life,
and therefore has a right to legitimate self defense. Although an act
of self-defense may have a two-fold effect — the preservation of
the person's life and the unfortunate taking of the aggressor's life —
the first effect is intended while the second is not.

In preserving its own life, a state — citizens and their governments
— must strive to avoid war and settle disputes peacefully and justly.
Nevertheless, "governments cannot be denied the right of lawful self-defense.
once all peace efforts have failed" (Vatican II, Pastoral Constitution
on the Church in the Modern World, #79). Such a right does not entail
a carte blanche permission for any and all acts of war. Just war theory
establishes moral parameters for the declaration and waging of war.

St. Augustine (d. 430) was the originator of the just war theory, which
St. Thomas Aquinas (d. 1274) later adapted and explicated in his Summa
Theologiae. St. Thomas maintained that a war may be waged justly under
three conditions: First, the legitimate authority who has the duty of
preserving the common good must declare the war. For instance, according
to our Constitution, only Congress can legitimately declare a war. A private
individual, no matter how much clout he may wield, does not have the right
to commit a country to war. (Please note, we could easily get into those
technical qualification of "police actions," "conflicts, " and "operations,
" but to the best of my knowledge, Congress has placed restrictions on
these areas.)

Secondly, a just cause for war must exist. St. Augustine, quoted by St.
Thomas, said, "A just war is apt to be described as bone that avenges
wrongs, when a nation or state has to be punished, for defusing to mace
amends for the wrongs inflected by its subjects, or to reborn what it
has seized unjustly.

Finally, St. Thomas said the warring party must have the right intention,
"so that they intend the advancement of good or the avoidance of evil.
" St. Augustine noted, "True religion looks upon as peaceful those wars
that are waged not for motives of aggrandizement or cruelty, but with
the object of securing peace or punishing evil-doers, and of uplifting
the good. " An evil intention, such as to destroy a race or to absorb
another nation, can turn a legitimately declared war waged for just cause
into a wrongful act."

Obviously, since the Middle Ages, warfare has changed dramatically, as
witnessed by World War II and the conflicts which have followed it. Therefore,
we can expand St. Thomas' and St. Augustine's theory to the following:
In preparing to wage a just war (ius ad bellum), a country must meet the
following criteria:

(1) Just cause — The war must confront an unquestioned danger. "The
damage inflicted by the aggressor or the nation or community of nations
must b lasting, grave and certain, assets the Catechism (#2309).

(2) Proper authority — The legitimate authority must declare the
war and must be acting on behalf of the people.

(3) Right Intention — The reasons for declaring the war must actually
be the objectives, not a masking of ulterior motives.

(4) Last resort — All reasonable peaceful alternatives must have
been exhausted or have been deemed impractical or ineffective. The contentious
parties must strive to resolve their differences peacefully before engaging
in war, e.g. through negotiation, mediation, or even embargoes. Here too
we see the importance of an international medial body, such as the United
Nations.

(5) Proportionality —The good that is achieved by waging war must
not be outweighed by the harm. What good is it to wage war if it leaves
the country in total devastation with no one really being the winner?
Modern means of warfare give great weight to this criterion.

(6) Probability of success — The achievement of the war's purpose
must have a reasonable chance of success.

If a country can meet these criteria, then it may justly enter war. Moreover,
a country could come to the assistance of another country who is not able
to defend itself as long as these criteria are met.

However, the event of war does not entail that all means of waging war
are licit; essentially, the "all is fair in love and war" rule is flawed.
During war, the country must also meet criteria to insure justice is preserved.

(1) Discrimination — Armed forces ought to fight armed forces, and
should strive not to harm non-combatants purposefully. Moreover, armed
forces should not wantonly destroy the enemy's countryside, cities, or
economy simply for the sake of punishment, retaliation or vengeance.

(2) Due proportion — Combatants must use only those means necessary
to achieve their objectives. For example, no one needs to use nuclear
missiles to settle a territorial fishing problem. Due proportion also
involves mercy — towards civilians in general, towards combatants
when the resistance stops (as in the case of surrender and prisoners of
war), and towards all parties when the war is finished.

While these are "just criteria" — they still are wrenching. It seems
paradoxical that the Christian religion which promotes love justifies
a violent action to establish justice. No good peon wants war. Yet at
times we — as an individual, community, or nation — must confront
and stop an evil. Pope John Paul II in an address to a group of soldiers
stated, "Peace, as taught by Sacred Scripture and the experience of men
itself, is more than just the absence of war. And the Christian is aware
that on earth a human society that is completely and always peaceful is
unfortunately an utopia and that the ideologies which present it as easily
attainable only nourish vain hopes. The cause of peace will not go forward
by denying the possibility and the obligation to defend it."

Next week, we will continue this discussion looking at the ideas of total
war and modern types of warfare.

Acknowledgement

This article is reprinted with permission from Arlington Catholic
Herald.

The Author

Father William Saunders is pastor of Our Lady of Hope parish in Potomac Falls, Virginia. He is dean of the Notre Dame Graduate School of Christendom College. The above article is a "Straight Answers" column he wrote for the Arlington Catholic Herald. Father Saunders is the author of Straight Answers, a book based on 100 of his columns, and Straight Answers II.